Package assembly

ABSTRACT

Novel assembly means are provided for aligning and unifying a plurality of similar packages, as of rolls of cellophane. Each package has end sections, which extend somewhat beyond the sidewalls and which have a plurality of suitably shaped notches. Spools, having hub portions adapted to engage the mating surface of the notches, and having flanges at each end adapted to engage end section walls around the notches, firmly retain the assembly together by preventing horizontal movement of the packages relative to each other. A curved or tapered surface is provided on one or both of the mating spool and end support notches in order to facilitate the desired alignment of the packages into a unitary assembly, from which the individual packages are easily and rapidly removable when desired.

United States Patent nu 3,593,861

[72] Inventor Walter C. Holland. Jr- FOREIGN PATENTS 553:9 131,5652/1949 Australia 52/586 N 3 969 Primary ExaminerGerald M. Forlenza (45]patemed b 197' Assistant ExaminerF rank E. Werner (73] Assignec OlinMathias)" Chemical Corporation Attorneys-Joseph Fleischer, Robert H.Bachman, Donald R.

[54] PACKAGE ASSEMBLY 7 Claims, Drawing Figs.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,698,571 1/1955 Harrison1,881,822 /1932 McKelligon... 220/7 312/107 312/107 206/ 206/65 3/ 1907Walton 1,434,220 10/1922 Morris.... 3,214,015 10/1965 Budd......

5/1968 Cannon Motsko and Thomas P. ODay ABSTRACT: Novel assembly meansare provided for aligning and unifying a plurality of similar packages,as of rolls of cellophane. Each package has end sections, which extendsomewhat beyond the sidewalls and which have a plurality of suitablyshaped notches. Spools, having hub portions adapted to engage the matingsurface of the notches, and having flanges at each end adapted to engageend section walls around the notches, firmly retain the assemblytogether by preventing horizontal movement of the packages relative toeach other. A curved or tapered surface is provided on one or both ofthe mating spool and end support notches in order to facilitate thedesired alignment of the packages into a unitary assembly, from whichthe individual packages are easily and rapidly removable when desired.

PATENTEUJUL20|9H 3.593.861

' sum 1 0r 2 WA um c. HOL LA -0. JR.

ATTORNEY INVENTOR.

PATENTED JUL20 nan SHEET 2 BF 2 ATTORNEY PMKAGE ASSI'IMBI BA('KGROUNDOFTHI- INVENTION This inventlon relates to the assembly of similarpackages to provide readily stacked or nested multiple units which arefirmly locked together for transportation or storage but from whichindividual packages are easily and quickly removable when so desired Thenovel means and method of assembly are particularly applicable to andillustrated by the ready stacking of rolls of elongated webs ofcellophane, paper, cloth, foil or films, for example, cellulose estersor ethers, vinyl polymers, polyamides, polyesters or polyolefines.Individual rolls of such webs which must be stored and transported arefrequently of substantial weight, amounting to hundreds of pounds and upto a l,000 pounds or more.

It has been the practice to assemble a number of such rolls on palletsor skids for transportation. with provision being made for strapping andfastening the rolls to each other and to the pallet. It has been atime-consuming and expensive operation to provide strong and stableassemblies of rolls adequate to supply the necessary protection to theindividual packages and, likewise, the disassembly at the destinationinvolved similar disadvantages. Various fastening expedients have beenutilized heretofore to provide the required strength and rigidity ofassembly but none of these had the desired attributes of ease, speedandeconomy of application or disassembly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, theproblems and disadvantages, which were unavoidable with the practicesand proposals of the prior art,-have been overcome by the provision ofnovel assembly means. These are essentially comprised of flanged spoolsadapted to mate with package end supports to prevent any substantialhorizontal movement of contiguous packages relative to each other,thereby firmly retaining the packages in the desired rigid assembly,while permitting the easy and rapid removal of individual packages whendesired. Each of the spools is provided with a hubportion, which engagesthe mating surface of notches or recesses in the periphery of adjacentend supports, and having a flange at each end of the hub engaging theend support wall. A further advantageous feature is the provision of acurvedor tapered surface on one or both of the mating spool and endsupport notches in order to facilitate the desired alignment of thepackages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The present invention will be clearlyunderstood as illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of this invention, showingtwo packages stacked in alignment and rigidly assembled for storage orshipment;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the elements of the packageassembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along line A-A ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of thisinvention, showing a plurality of packaged rolls of film stackedin-alignment and rigidly assembled;

FIG. 5 is an end view of a modification in accordance with the inventionwherein the alignment and rigidity of the assembly is increased by theuse of additional spools at the base .and comers of the end supports.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An illustrative example of amultiple package assembly in accordance with the invention is shown inFIGS, 1-3 of the drawing, wherein multiple packages are aligned and heldtogether by means of spools which ,conform with notches in the packageend sections, so as to provide effective resistance against relativehorizontal-movement Packages 1 are provided with end SCCIIOI 2 which arelarger in truss section than the body ol the packages so that the endperipheries extend somewhat beyond the sidewalls as shown The endsections are provided with suitably shaped and spaced notches 3 adaptedto receive spools 4 The spools comprise a hub portion 5 and flangedheads .6, which are preferably of circular cross section with the hubsurface conforming with the surface of the notches 3 As shown, the inneredge of flanged heads 6 may be rounded or tapered inwardly for thepurpose of facilitating the proper alignment in stacking the assemblyWith a spool in position within each exposed notch of a lower package,the upper package can-beplaced over it at approximately its desiredlocation, and because of its weightit will be guided by the matingcontoured surfaces and drop into the desired aligned location.

With the assembly completed as shown in FIG. 1, resistance againstlongitudinal horizontal movement of each package relative to itsneighboring packages is provided by the flanged heads of the spools andagainst lateral movement by the spool hubs. While FIG I shows anassembly of two packages, it will be understood that a greater numbermay be similarly assembled.

The ease of alignment can likewise be increased by the additionalprovision of inwardly contoured surfaces at the edges of notches 3, orcan be accomplished satisfactorily by such provision, without the needfor any inward rounding or tapering of the flanged heads. In the lattercase, a larger area of the flanged heads is contiguous to end sections 2and would tend to increase the rigidity of the assembly.

If desired, the rigidity of assembly may be increasedby applying eitheror both longitudinal or lateral binding tapes or straps around theunited packages. Removal of the individual packages from the assembly,when desired, is readily accomplished bylifting away the uppermostpackage or packages, and removing the exposed spools, whereupon theremaining packages are easily removable.

Satisfactory spools and package end sections may be made of wood, metal,plastics, ceramics, vulcanized fiber or other suitably treatedcompressed paper, composite board, mineral board, or other material ofsuitable strength ,and resistance to withstand long use and roughhandling. Spools of any tough hard wood such as hard maple are generallypreferred, although in some applications spools of molded plastic arealso highly advantageous, preferably of plastics having high impactstrength, for example, of polypropylene, polystyrene, polyacetals,polycarbonates, nylon, or fiber-filled polymeric compounds. Moldedspools may be provided having an axial opening through the hub or. otherinternal hollows to facilitate the molding process as well as weightreduction while fumishing the requisite strength and desired enduranceproperties.

While the spool has beenshown as having a circular cross section, whichis preferred, the invention is not limited thereto as advantageousresults are readily attained with others. For

. example, either or both the hub and the mating notch may have anelliptical or polygonal cross section so as to increase the resistanceagainst the relative movement of the adjacent packages. Likewise, theself-alignment feature may be enhanced by the provision of spoolsprovided with a hub surface which tapers inwardlyfrom both ends andconforming notch surfaces.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIG. 4representing an assembly of large packaged rolls of cellophane stackedfor shipment or storage. Four packaged rolls are shown, it being .clearthat additional rolls may be similarly stacked therewith horizontally orvertically. Each package 11 contains a cylindrical roll of cellophaneconvolutely wound on a hollow cylindrical core, not shown in thedrawing. For example. the core of heavy cardboard may have a diameter ofabout '-kraft paper or of plastic film Each package is completed byattaching an end section 12 at both ends, for example, by aligning theend of the core with the central opening of the section and forcing aclosely-fitting flanged plug 17 into fastening position Each packagedroll 11. complete with end two parallel sections [2 fastened thereto, isstacked in turn with other similar rolls after inserting spools 14. asdescribed in connection with the previous embodiment, in conformingnotches 13, thus to form a rigid aligned assembly. The bottom row ofpackages is first assembled on the floor of the skid or pallet asdescribed above, followed by the succeeding row or rows, each packagebeing lowered into approximate position after the spools have beeninserted in the corresponding notches. The desired alignment is obtainedthrough the interaction of the conforming contoured surfaces of thespools and notches, and a stable assembly results because of theresistance to relative horizontal movement of thepackages effected bythe spool hubs and flanged heads, particularly as enhanced by theconsiderable weight of each package.

The ease and rapidity of such assembly likewise characterize theoperation of removing individual packages when desired. This merelyrequires, after removal of any binding tapes which may have been used,the lifting of each package in turn from the assembly, followed by theremoval of the exposed spools.

The rigidity and alignment of the packages in this embodiment isenhanced by the provision of lateral notches and mating spools, betweenthe end sections of horizontally adjacent packages. For convenience,such lateral notches are downwardly recessed, as shown in FIG. 4, sothat the spools may readily be inserted and will stay in place prior tothe stacking operation. Although the spool is then not centrally placedbetween the adjacent vertical edges of the adjacent end sections, theflanged head sufficiently overlaps both to maintain the desiredalignment. The lateral notches may be provided in both adjacent verticaledges, for example, having any suitable form, such as triangular orsemicircular, and the spool may be inserted with suitable retainingmeans, as by areas of pressure-sensitive adhesive, prior to the assemblyof the packages.

Referring to FIG. 5, an embodiment of the invention is represented whichincludes a number of modifications. It will be noted that the endsections 22 are provided with notches 23 at the center and corners ofeach peripheral edge of the end section. These notches are contoured tomate with the spools 24, which have the structure as described above inconnection with the previous embodiments.

An additional feature is that the floor upon which the assembly rests.which may be a storeroom floor or a skid or pallet surface. is providedat the predetermined areas either with half spools fastened thereto orcontoured depressions into which spools are inserted Thereby, the bottomrow of packages is aligned properly and maintained in said alignment.

Furthermore. the provision of properly recessed comers, for thereception of spools between three or four adjacent packages, tends toprovide maximum rigidity of assembly for the least number of spools. Thepackages in successive higher rows may be superposed directly on apackage below or may straddle two such packages, as indicated in dottedlines, to provide an assembly of maximum stability.

Accordingly, it will be understood that the package assembly means andmethod in accordance with the present invention are widely applicable toprovide readily self-alignment and locking together of stacked packagesand, at the same time, the easy removal of individual packages whendesired. Modifications may therefore be made in the specificillustrative details within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An interlocked and aligned assembly of like packages each having aprojecting wall fastened thereto at both ends and each said wall havinga plurality of spaced peripheral notches thereon, wherein each saidpackage consists of a convolutely wound elongated web, said assemblycomprising removable spools positioned in opposed notches of adjacentpackages, said s ols havin a hub portion coextensive with said notchesan terminate at each end by a flanged head,

and said spools and notches being shaped to effect the selfalignment andinterlocking of said assembly.

2. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said spool hubs and saidnotches have conforming surfaces.

3. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said spools have acurvilinear cross section.

4. An assembly as set forth in claim I, wherein said flanged headsoverlie the end walls of a plurality of said packages.

5. An assembly as set forth in claim I, wherein said notches are locatedsubstantially symmetrically on each package end wall.

6. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said notches include oneat each package end wall corner.

7. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein the bottom packagesinclude said notches and spools at the base thereof, whereby to effectalignment and interlocking with a supporting surface.

1. An interlocked and aligned assembly of like packages each having aprojecting wall fastened thereto at both ends and each said wall havinga plurality of spaced peripheral notches thereon, wherein each saidpackage consists of a convolutely wound elongated web, said assemblycomprising removable spools positioned in opposed notches of adjacentpackages, said spools having a hub portion coextensive with said notchesand terminated at each end by a flanged head, and said spools andnotches being shaped to effect the self-alignment and interlocking ofsaid assembly.
 2. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein saidspool hubs and said notches have conforming surfaces.
 3. An assembly asset forth in claim 1, wherein said spools have a curvilinear crosssection.
 4. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said flangedheads overlie the end walls of a plurality of said packages.
 5. Anassembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said notches are locatedsubstantially symmetrically on each package end wall.
 6. An assembly asset forth in claim 1, wherein said notches include one at each packageend wall corner.
 7. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein thebottom packages include said notches and spools at the base thereof,whereby to effect alignment and interlocking with a supporting surface.